‘Alaska’ Developer Appeals to the OMB

In what has become a de rigeur move for developers, the ‘Alaska’ applicant has appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board,citing an undue delay by the City in responding to the application. A pre-hearing is set for March 31st. UYNA has retained legal counsel and will continue to represent residents’ concerns about the proposed 10-storey mixed use building at Strathgowan and Yonge.

This latest submission integrates some of UYNA’s concerns regarding the transition to the neighbourhood; however, several key issues remain unaddressed:

Height and density
The developer has not reduced the height from 10 storeys and has actually increased the density from 132 to 161 residential units. The larger the building, the greater its impact on our neighbourhood.

Vehicle access

The vehicle access has been reconfigured so that all vehicles, except service vehicles, would enter and exit the site from Strathgowan across from Sheridan Nurseries’ main entrance. All of us who live in the neighbourhood know that this configuration is not feasible: that Strathgowan would be even more congested and dangerous than it already is and that more vehicles would use St. Hilda’s and Blythwood to access Yonge Street.

Strathgowan frontage
A 10-storey glass wall with no setback or terracing is proposed for Strathgowan. The developer has not responded to our requests for revisions which would integrate the Strathgowan frontage into the neighbourhood. Instead, ‘Alaska’ is being promoted as a Yonge Street building, even though its largest frontage is on Strathgowan.

UYNA was established to prepare a strong neighbourhood response to the proposed development and other issues that affect the Uptown Yonge neighbourhood. It would be wrong for indifference to allow irrevocable damage to the qualities which make our neighbourhood so desirable. By ensuring that development on both sides of Yonge conforms to City policies and respects our neighbourhood, we are investing in the future of the Uptown Yonge neighbourhood. We welcome your feedback and financial support. Please contact UYNA at strathgowanalaska@gmail.com.